Students impacted Hurricane Harvey from Texas spend weekend in DCFox5DC

5 p.m. Feb. 17 7-day FOXRAD ForecastFox 26 Houston

Man charged in wife's deadly shootingFox 26 Houston

Costly credit card mistakesFox 26 Houston

Year of the Dog at Asia Society Texas CenterFox 26 Houston

7 a.m. Feb. 17 FOXRAD ForecastFox 26 Houston

Showers to start, breaks of sun to finishFox4

Fatal FBI flaw before Parkland school shootingFox 26 Houston

Museum exhibit dedicated to Sandra BlandFox 26 Houston

Bringing together Harvey survivors & relief agenciesFox 26 Houston

A Hewlett-Packard spokesman said the company could not comment on the incident because it involves an open investigation but gave an official statement:

"HP takes matters concerning the health and safety of our employees very seriously. Their well-being is paramount to all of us. At this time we are fully cooperating with the Harris County Health Department in their investigation, and beyond that we cannot comment any further."

According to the department's reports, the first person began to feel ill about 4 a.m., Obey said. The time span for the outbreak won't be known until the department's epidemiologists complete their investigation, she said.

According to the department's reports, the first person began to feel ill about 4 a.m., Obey said. The time span for the outbreak won't be known until the department's epidemiologists complete their investigation, she said.

"We're going to speak to everyone on the night shift," she said.

Since the company's food service does not operate at night, it's possible that people got sick from food that was brought in, Obey said.

"If it does turn out to be a food-borne illness, this would be a good reminder to all of us to practice hygiene skills when cooking," Obey said. "Don't use the same knife with meat and vegetables. Wash your hands frequently so you don't have cross-contamination."

Although she declined to name the hospital for patient confidentiality reasons, Obey praised the staff members who alerted the health department to the incident.

"Clusters of illness are reportable by state law," she said. "They did an awesome job of calling and letting us know. It helps with our overall epidemiological surveillance."